Page 220 - Grow from Within Mastering Corporate Entrepreneurship and Innovation

Leadership from All Le vels 205

No, we aren’t in cardiovascular but if we are going to go into
a therapeutic area that is new to us, we should do it with ex-
isting technology and product know-how to manage the risk
better. I know it may not be next year or the year after, but our
investors are also interested in what Baxter is going to do for
them five or ten years from now. And thirdly, I know the FDA
has no clear pathway but at least we can talk to them, we can
map it out together. The risk is completely acceptable and low.

While uncertainty was looming as a result of both change at
the top and a refocus on core businesses, many at the company
questioned why Cellular Therapies should continue to be
funded at all. But Riedel and Hunt mustered all of their bud -
getary authority and political capital to take the concept
through FDA Phase I.
Fortunately, their bet paid off. The trial worked. Concurrent
with the trials process, Uppal and her team continued to
develop the razor-and-razor-blade business model, validate
the market opportunity, and define the path to market. This
opportunity required special attention. Many advanced med-
ical products are distributed and marketed to medical special-
ists. But companies that build a strong reputation and
capabilities around one specialty do not necessarily have any
credibility or access to physicians within other specialties.
While the technology’s role in oncology was well understood,
the company had little exposure to cardiac-care providers.
Those within Baxter who questioned the wisdom of entering
the cardiology market, even with a strong technology play like
Cellular Therapies, had a good point—building a presence
within a new medical specialty takes time and capital. This
opportunity required a strategic decision at the highest level.
Hunt and her team made the case that while the market would
be new for Baxter, the technology was well known and proven